Minis
Mini Copy Book

Each post in this section is a short précis (summary) of a passage in The Copy Book. All of them are in modern English. They are intended for students of English as a Foreign Language at Elementary Level.

Extracts from Literature

Alice gets an English Lesson

Alice meets Humpty Dumpty, and it turns out that she has been using words wrong all her life.

Length: 119 words

Discovery and Invention

Thomas Brassey

The unsung surveyor from Cheshire, who built railways and made friends across the world.

Length: 115 words

International Relations

An Exceptional Nation

William Gladstone explains that a truly ‘exceptional nation’ respects the equality and rights of all nations.

Length: 51 words

International Relations

The Din of Diplomacy

William Gladstone warns voters not to leave foreign policy in the hands of interventionist politicians.

Length: 58 words

Discovery and Invention

A Leader by Example

George Stephenson won the admiration of French navvies by showing them how a Geordie works a shovel.

Length: 59 words

Extracts from Literature

The Language of Balnibarbi

Lemuel Gulliver finds that the people of Balnibarbi just don’t appreciate their hardworking academics.

Length: 56 words